


Introduction to Third Party Negotiations

by karatechop55



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Circa Season 3, F/M, M/M, Multi, a fun new kind of fake dating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-08-15
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:40:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25569874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/karatechop55/pseuds/karatechop55
Summary: Abed and Troy being in love and then realizing they’re also in love with Annie. Because what else on earth is there to write about.
Relationships: Annie Edison/Abed Nadir, Troy Barnes/Abed Nadir, Troy Barnes/Annie Edison, Troy Barnes/Annie Edison/Abed Nadir
Comments: 22
Kudos: 149





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place in some amorphous season three-y time when Abed, Annie, and Troy are living together. Imagine Troy and Abed had gotten together during summer break after season two, and when they made the announcement to the group in season three about moving in together, they had also announced their relationship.
> 
> I have finished chapter 2 so it should be up soon

Troy and Abed are sprawled on their couch, five movies deep into a J-horror marathon. Troy didn’t like horror movies before Abed. With Abed, they’re scary in a fun way, because Abed talks about camera angles and homages and the actors’ oeuvre, and his commentary can remove Troy enough that he doesn’t start feeling like the story is real. Abed delivers that kind of distancing analysis more with horror than any other genre, and Troy thinks he does it specifically to keep Troy from freaking out. Abed is good like that. Once he figures out a way to make the people around him comfortable or happy, he’ll do it meticulously and without fail.

Tonight, though, even with Abed’s commentary on what the umbilical cord they’re watching a man get strangled with is _really_ made of, Troy’s heart isn’t in it.

It was for the first two movies. Coincidentally, Annie watched the first two movies with them. Annie also helps him handle horror because sometimes he’ll find himself watching her instead of the movie. She screams like him when something scary happens, but then she laughs at herself for it, and her laughter – regardless of context – seems to ground him. Or when she’s nervous her eyes will get really big, and he’ll feel like he’s looking at a baby deer, and the heavy breathing or creepy music coming from the TV will fade into the background.

The third movie was alright. Annie popped in and out for it, while she was getting ready for her date. She couldn’t follow the plot but knew better than to ask questions as Abed and Troy would find it annoying. She still liked seeing the freaky stuff. Troy is still sometimes surprised by the edgy side of her, the side that carried around a gun before she moved in with them, that fondly talks about the meth addicts she befriended in rehab, that spent a weekend picking out the perfect cat burglar gear for her and her two roommates, just in case “something comes up”, and then that something turning out to be breaking into Professor Duncan’s office to find evidence that his most recent published article was half based on an essay she had submitted in freshman year.

Annie left during a popcorn refill break before the fourth movie started, wearing the kind of pretty dress women in old musicals wear, movies that were originally in black and white but were recolored artificially and everything was just a bit too bright to be real. Annie is like that sometimes, and so are her clothes.

Troy did not follow the fourth movie. He is equally confused by the fifth. There is a possibility that Abed’s chosen viewing sequence has the plots getting increasingly more advanced and complex, and Troy’s not one to question Abed’s wisdom when it comes to things like this, so he continues watching. Even if he doesn’t follow the plot, a good jump scare is still a good jump scare. And watching anything with Abed is always worth it, because Abed is so attentive to the screen, never seems to blink, except for moments Troy can never predict, where Abed will turn to him – to see his reaction, to see if they’re on the same page, to see if Troy likes what Abed was hoping he’d like. And those moments make Troy feel warm enough that he never really cares what Abed suggests they watch. Abed hasn’t done that, though, hasn’t looked at Troy that way, at least not since the third movie. He’s been frowning and blinking and Troy doesn’t know what’s wrong until Abed suddenly picks up the remote and turns the TV off. Troy gasps in shock. Even when he really hates something, Abed waits until a scene break to turn it off. That was mid dialogue line!

“Something’s not right,” Abed says. “We’re not appreciating this the way it deserves to be appreciated.”

“Yeah,” Troy says. He shouldn’t be surprised that Abed is on the same page as him. “I should care more about that dog disappearing and where it could’ve ended up. But I just got a weird feeling in my stomach and I can’t give the dog the respect it deserves.”

Abed nods. “For me the decline in emotional investment coincided with Annie’s departure. Do you think they could be connected?”

“Maybe,” Troy says. He doesn’t like to think that Abed’s feeling how he’s feeling, because it’s not a nice way to feel, so he reaches over to take his boyfriend’s hand. Abed smiles at him, for a split second, and Troy forgets what they’re talking about.

“I can’t work out why Annie’s absence would change things, though,” Abed says. “I like showing her a lot of things. I don’t really mind not showing her J Horror. I don’t think she could benefit from it the way she can benefit from the Saturday Night Noir Session, for example.”

When they watch noir, Annie does femme fatale impressions where she covers one of her eyes with her hair and lowers her voice. Abed prefers playing the villains in noir, which means Troy gets to be the detective, and Annie flirts with him, and he really enjoys it. Abed flirts with him too because he says pre-code noir was rife with homoerotic subtext and gay-coded villains. Troy enjoys that too. Troy loves their Saturday Night Noir Sessions. “Yeah,” he says. “Maybe... I mean. Maybe we’re worried about her?”

Abed cocks his head. Troy elaborates. “This is the fifth date she’s gone on in the last two weeks, and none of the other four went well. Maybe we just don’t want our Annie coming home all sad again.”

Abed pauses for a moment, and Troy lets him. Abed taking things slowly always helps Troy slow down his own brain, and that’s something he usually struggles with. “You’re right. I am worried about her. We should plan something to cheer her up, if this date is another disaster.”

“Shadow puppet theatre?” Troy asks. It’s the most sure fire way he and Abed have of getting her to smile. Jeff has his speeches, Shirley has her baked goods and hugs, and Britta has somehow retained enough cool girl cred in Annie’s eyes that if she offers approval, Annie will stop being so hard on herself. Even Pierce has some strange fatherly role in Annie’s life, so that when he tells her to chin up, she often does. Troy feels safe offering Annie comfort through shenanigans and role play. There are other things he can think of – like maybe trying to make her pancakes, or him and Abed cuddling her, or telling her how awesome and special she is. For some reason those possibilities make him feel scared, so he thinks resurrecting Horsebot 3000 might be a better option.

“That’s a good idea,” Abed nods. “What about finally resurrecting Horsebot 3000? I think there’s been enough build up.”

“Yeah,” Troy says. “I’ll cut out something to be the fountain of youth.”

  
  


Annie comes home at eleven thirty. She smiles at them and asks about the movies so convincingly that Troy thinks the date must’ve gone well this time, but then Abed asks her out right _did the date go well this time_ and her face crumples. She does that thing where for a few seconds she looks like she’s going to start sobbing, before she composes herself. It’s as heartbreaking as ever, and Troy turns to Abed, and they nod at each other.

They don’t ask any more questions because they know from the last four times that Annie doesn’t like talking about what went wrong until the next day. Instead, they gesture for her to take a seat on the bottom bunk in the blanket fort, and they grab the puppets. As soon as she must realize what they’re doing, Troy hears her squeal from behind the sheet. He hated seeing her face the way it looked, and has hated seeing her scrub away her makeup almost like a punishment, like she was embarrassed to have put it on in the first place, the other four nights she came home. But he has to admit that he’s kind of happy to have her here with them rather than wherever she might be if the date had gone well, laughing and clapping as they play out the resurrection and subsequent adventure, and then giving them tight hugs in thanks afterwards. Partly because he put a lot of work into the fountain and he wouldn’t want it to go to waste, and partly because Abed told him that Britta said Annie was on a date with the smug TA from history of ice cream, and they both agreed that guy is a tool.

  
  


Abed climbs into Troy’s bunk three hours later. A lot of nights Abed prefers to sleep alone, and sometimes he likes staying with Troy for a while to talk about their days or their thoughts or their anything, until retreating to his own bunk. There’s no real pattern to it but somehow Troy can tell that Abed will be sleeping here tonight. He smiles into his pillow and tangles their legs together. Abed taps his finger against Troy’s shoulder. It’s a habit of his that Troy doesn’t really understand, a strange placeholder for more conventional forms of physical affection, but Troy is going to give himself another month or so to figure out what it means before he asks Abed. He likes when he’s able to figure out Abed’s quirks himself.

“I think our mission was a success,” Abed says, in one of his movie voices.

“Affirmative,” Troy agrees.

“But I want to do more,” Abed says. “I don’t want Annie to keep going on bad dates.”

“Oh. Do you think we should try to find someone for her to go on good dates with?”

“No,” Abed says firmly. Troy is momentarily taken aback, because Abed has been good at at least going through the motions of considering Troy’s suggestions before dismissing them ever since the Blanket Pillow War. But he doesn’t mind this time, because he finds he doesn’t want Abed to have agreed to his suggestion. He’s always struggled to think of anyone that would be good enough for Annie anyway. Except for a vague concept of chivalry and accomplishment, or Clive Owen, or Abed. He gets why Annie kissed Abed when he was Han Solo. He’s been jealous about some of Abed’s other romantic escapades from before they got together officially, but never that kiss.

“Should we try and get her to stop going on dates?”

“I don’t think that’s fair.”

Troy nods. As much as Abed hates being told what to do or how to think, he is equally loathe to do it to others.

“Then what can we do?”

“Further research is required. Why is Annie going on all these dates? Why the sudden interest? What is she finding disappointing about them? What is she looking for from them? Only then shall we know what we must do.”

“Awesome,” Troy says. “We should talk to her tomorrow.”

Abed smiles at him. “Yeah.”

They’re in the cafeteria when Annie goes over the date, Shirley cooing on her right and Britta grunting indignantly on her left. Annie starts with the TA staring at her boobs the whole time (Troy himself has long since learned to set himself a five second limit) and finishes with him acting like there must be something wrong with her for not having transferred out of Greendale yet. Jeff offers to start making demeaning comments within the TA’s earshot about how underwhelming his biceps are, and Annie instructs him not to but brightens visibly anyway. Pierce tells her that real men are hard to come by these days, and Annie nods and agrees – Troy suspects because none of them want to know what Pierce considers a real man. Troy doesn’t know what to say, and Abed doesn’t either, but they’d linked arms with Annie on their way to class that morning and he hopes that counts for something. He does feel intensely angry – reminded of the librarian’s cruel words about Abed being weird on valentine’s day – but he doesn’t know how to articulate it. He keeps clenching and unclenching his fist under the table, until Abed covers it with his hand.

The group soon starts to disperse, but Abed and Troy know Annie doesn’t have a class, so under the table they each catch one of Annie’s ankles with their own in a synchronized and practiced move, effectively keeping her from standing up. She raises her eyebrows at them, and they motion for her to stay quiet, which she does save for a giggle. Shirley glances at them in confusion, but still continues with the rest of the group in departing from the cafeteria.

“What’s up guys?” Annie asks, before gasping lightly and leaning in. “Are hijinks afoot?”

When the study group first started Troy wouldn’t have picked Annie for being the most on board with his and Abed’s ways, but it makes sense now. She might spend a lot of her time proving how adult she is, but she needs an outlet, and he knows – with all she’s been through – she appreciates getting to see the world in a more magical light. That’s the Abed guarantee.

“Always,” Abed assures her. “But right now we want to have a conversation.”

“As your roommates your happiness is our top priority,” Troy continues, and feels encouraged by her responding smile and blush. “And we strive to deliver the most pleasant living experience we can.”

“But you’ve been on five unsuccessful dates now,” Abed says, “and we want to make sure you’re alright. We want to know if there’s anything we can do.”

“Oh, you guys, that’s sweet!” she says, then shrugs. “And I’m alright. Have to kiss a few frogs, right?”

Apparently the correct response to that isn’t silence, because Annie’s face threatens to crumple again. “Oh, God, there’s something wrong with me.”

“Annie, you have perfect hair and teeth,” Abed says. “And you make people feel good when you’re around. I mightn’t know the guys you’ve gone out with, but I know you, and that’s enough for me to conclude that there’s something wrong with them.”

“Aw, Abed! I appreciate that, but...” Annie shakes her head. “you haven’t seen how I am on those dates. It’s no surprise the guys aren’t interested in me. Crazy Annie always ends up coming out.”

“Crazy Annie’s fun,” Troy says. “Unless. Did you chloroform any of them?”

“What? No!” Annie says, then leans in with her voice lowered. “You know Abed confiscated the chloroform.”

“Then I don’t know how you could’ve screwed it up,” Abed says, looking as confused as Troy feels. “We’ve known you for years. Guys think you’re adorable, and we know you’re good at getting what you want.”

Annie laughs, but it doesn’t sound happy. Abed glances at Troy who shakes his head to confirm that it wasn’t a good laugh. “I guess that might be the problem. I get excited that a guy shows interest in me, and I plan it out in my head, how amazing it’s going to be, but when I’m actually there, I can’t focus on being a good date. Because what I really want… is sort of to be back at the apartment. With you guys.”

Abed’s grip on Troy’s hand under the table tightens, and Troy feels warm and excited.

“I’m sorry if that’s weird or clingy,” Annie says, wide eyes widening further. “I don’t mean to be a third wheel or anything.”

“I don’t really know what metric to use to judge weirdness or clingy-ness, but I don’t mind it either way,” Abed says.

“And what’s wrong with third wheels?” Troy says. “I always wished they made tricycles for adults.”

Abed nods. “And three wheeled cars are cool.”

Annie smiles. “I prefer those sleeker, narrower shopping carts to the four wheeled ones. You have more control with them.”

Troy smiles back, glad to resolve that issue. “If you’re not really sure about these dates, then why are you going on them?”

“Well…” Annie sighs. “Shirley’s back with Andre, and it turns out Jeff and Britta were secretly dating all last year, and living with you guys… I guess I just felt lonely. I wanted to be in a relationship too. I wanted to have someone.”

“You have us,” Abed and Troy say simultaneously. Usually when they say the same thing at the same time they do their handshake, but it doesn’t feel appropriate right now. Troy is shocked and saddened to learn of her loneliness. He had known she had felt isolated last summer, working a job where she struggled to fit in with her mostly older colleagues, but he had assumed that was in the past. He had assumed, he realized, that her moving in with him and Abed had solved that problem. His stomach twists thinking it may in fact have exacerbated it.

“And I love you, but it’s not the same.” Annie looks down, shrugs. “I want someone I can, you know… go on dates with.”

Troy and Abed glance at each other, and exchange secret smiles. This information gathering mission has been a success on par with resurrecting Horsebot 3000.

They know exactly what they have to do. They have to bring Annie on the perfect date.

  
  


  
  



	2. Chapter 2

They have their study session a few hours later, and this time it’s Jeff Troy and Abed detain. He sighs, but stays in his seat as the others file out.

“What’s up, guys?” he asks.

“How do you make a date awesome?” Troy asks.

“By showing up,” Jeff says. “Wait, are you talking about how I do it specifically, or are you looking for advice?”

“Advice.”

“Okay. You might have to do more than show up.”

Troy glances to his left to see if Abed is making a notch for that zinger. Abed’s not, and Troy can tell from the twitch in Jeff’s brow that he has also noticed and is disappointed.

“Is there trouble in paradise?” Jeff asks. “Because I can barely handle listening to you guys talking about paradise, I’m definitely not up for hearing you talk about trouble. Britta, I’m sure, would love the opportunity.”

“No trouble,” Abed says, a slight frown. Troy has noticed that a sure fire way for others to provoke Abed is by casting any doubt on his relationship with Troy. It can both break Troy’s heart and make it swell, depending.

“Yeah, our dates are already awesome.”

“This is a date we’re planning to take Annie on.”

Jeff’s expression goes from detached to surprised to confused. “Is it a double date? Is she bringing someone?”

“No, it’ll be us three.”

“I... does Annie know about this?”

“No. It’s going to be a surprise. She wants to go on a nice date, so we’re going to bring her on the date of her dreams, while playing her ideal men.”

“Okay,” Jeff says. “That’s insane.”

“It’s genius," Troy corrects. "We’re going to take her on the dates she wants to go on, so she doesn’t have to keep having crappy nights with crappy dudes that leave her all sad. Her problems will be solved. Or, well. One specific problem. She’ll still be broke, and the guy who lives below us will still keep asking her for her socks. But the whole wanting to date thing will be solved.”

“Except that Annie doesn’t just want to go on dates." Jeff looks up from his phone, pulls a face. "You realize that dates aren’t end goals in themselves, right? People go on them because they want them to lead to something else. For most people, that’s sex. For Annie it’s a wedding and someone to pick out ties for.”

Abed’s eyes widen, and Troy knows they’re thinking the same thing. “You’re saying we should throw her a wedding, too?”

“No, I’m saying...” Jeff rolls his eyes, lifts his hands in surrender. “You know what, a date sounds like a great idea. I’m sure Annie will love it.”

Troy laughs. “Please, Jeffrey. We know it’s a great idea, we didn’t come to you for your approval.”

“We just want you to go over dating logistics with us so we know what taking her on a date will actually entail.”

Jeff sighs, looks at them shrewdly, and leans in. “Fancy restaurant, nice clothes, always a color that brings out your eyes but maybe buttoning the shirt slightly wrong if she seems like the kind of woman who likes projects, which, by the way, Annie is. Recommending wine for her but not ordering the food for her, redirecting the conversation to her and not talking about yourself, saying you’re going to the bathroom but instead paying the sommelier ten dollars to address you by name when he comes to your table so she thinks you like her enough to take her somewhere you’re a regular.”

“Interesting, interesting,” Troy says. Abed nods as he takes notes. “What about staging an assassination attempt where the both of you have to crawl back into the kitchen to escape, and she realizes that as well as being a total gentleman, you also live a life of danger?”

“What? How the hell would you arrange that?” Jeff’s face falls, and Troy almost feels bad. He thinks Jeff had been secretly enjoying discussing something he’s good at that his study group typically doesn’t care about. “Oh, how stupid of me. You’re not actually going to take her on a date to a fancy restaurant. You’re going to have a fake one in your apartment.”

“Duh doy,” Troy says.

Abed raises a finger. “Unless you’re willing to lend us money for nice suits, how ever much a fancy dinner costs, and ten dollars in bribery money.”

Jeff scoffs. “I hadn’t finished going through the evening. You bribe more people than just the sommelier. And also, no.”

Troy and Abed glance at each other again, then stand up. “If you think of anything else, give us a call,” Abed says.

Jeff grunts and returns to his phone, but as they’re leaving he calls after them. “If you tell anyone any of my dating secrets, I’ll tell the film department how Abed’s movie rating algorithm works.”

Troy wraps his arm around Abed protectively and shoots Jeff a death glare.

  
  


Despite his consternation over the plan, Jeff agrees to take Annie to the movies so that Troy and Abed can set up their apartment. They carefully remove a white sheet from the blanket fort and use it as a table cloth, and put a vase of flowers from Shirley’s garden on top. They dim the lights and steal some candles from Annie’s room, as well as using her nice tablewear which she usually bans them from touching – they figure if she knew their intentions in this instance she would let them away with it. The Sarah McLoughlin CD from their local coffee shop plays quietly in the background. They wear the suits from their house warming party, minus the neck ties, and dab themselves with some of Jeff’s back up aftershave which they stole from his car. Neither of them are good cooks, but they know presentation is key from the shows they watch, so they buy name brand microwave dinners and arrange them nicely on the fancy plates, with garnish from Annie’s small herb garden on their fire escape. Most of the preparation, admittedly, is dedicated to designing the characters they'll be playing.

Troy and Abed are seated at the table when Annie comes in, and they both stand up as she gasps.

“You guys, what is this?”

“Restaurante de Cuisine de Soleil,” Troy says.

“What?”

“I know it must be a surprise, usually the waiting list is a month long,” Abed laughs, “but I helped the chef through some marital troubles way back when, so he always keeps a table warm for me.”

Annie stands there, smiling but looking confused.

“Where are our manners, let us introduce ourselves,” Troy says. “I’m Brent Underjaw, this is Brian Gosling. We’ve heard so much about you from our mutual friend who set us up on this blind date.”

Annie squeals and claps. “You guys are role playing? Why didn’t you tell me, can’t I play someone? Ooh, what about a European heiress who was cheated out of her fortune by her scheming brother and his manipulative wife?”

Abed frowns. “No, you’re Annie. We’re your dates.”

“I don’t get it. Why are you guys role playing if I’m not?”

“Because you wanted to have a nice date. So we’re being your nice dates.”

Annie looks down. “And you have to role play for that. Right.”

“Well yeah,” Troy says, “we’re being the kind of guys you’d like. I’m a suave, successful business man whose wife died tragically and needs someone to help mend his broken heart.”

Annie gets her aww face back on and approaches them at the table. “Was she the only woman you’ve ever been with?”

Troy nods sadly. “I gave her a promise ring when we were sixteen.”

Annie’s hand flies to her heart as Abed clears his throat.

“And I’m a scatterbrained millionaire inventor whose assistants keep quitting because they can’t handle how hard he is to care for.”

“I’ll care for you,” Annie says wistfully. “Is that why your shirt’s buttoned all wrong?”

She leans in to fix it before Abed answers. Troy and Abed fist bump just as the microwave dings.

“Ah, that must be the food.”

“Wow, such quick service,” Annie marvels. “Chef Gustavo must really appreciate what you did for his marriage.”

Troy smiles triumphantly. Annie is the _best_ at coming up with names. They’re going to nail this dating thing.

  
  


They do nail it. Troy and Abed had bigger plans for the evening, including a potential twist where Brian is poisoned because the chef was actually bearing a secret grudge, or Brent’s dead wife is not so dead and also Annie’s old nemesis, but the timing never feels right. Instead they just have… a nice date. Troy and Abed float in and out of Brent and Brian, and Annie fluctuates between addressing them as such and addressing them by their real names. Troy finds it easier to tell Annie how beautiful she is when he’s deepening his voice and using fancier words, and Abed occasionally puts his Brian face on to trot out those flirtatious one liners he’s startlingly adept at. Annie really seems to enjoy it, but not necessarily more than she seems to enjoy their three way thumb war over who has to get the dessert from the fridge. Troy feels even more scorn for the other guys she went on dates with. This shit is so easy, he doesn’t know how they screwed it up.

The only awkward moment comes at the end, when they’re ready to retreat to their respective rooms. Abed later points out to Troy that this is the typical awkward moment on dates, at least in films and on TV, where the parties aren’t sure whether to kiss or invite each other back to their place or to say, _I had fun, I’d love to do this again sometime._ Troy considers kissing Annie, and he knows Abed does to, because they’re nothing if not committed to the bit, but she initiates a handshake that deters them both. They live together, so inviting each other back to their place is obviously out of the question.

They do end up saying that they’d like to do this again sometime. The next night, to be exact – Annie has made allusions to feeling under dressed through out the evening, and promises that she’ll put on a nice dress tomorrow, if they’re up for it. Troy feels a sense of relief that reminds him of the first time he kissed Abed, and Abed kissed him back.

“That was really nice,” he whispers to Abed from his bunk that night.

“Yeah,” Abed whispers back. “Annie’s really nice.”

  
  


Despite the success of the evening, they keep it under wraps from the rest of the group the next day. Troy’s not exactly sure why. It’s not the weirdest thing they’ve ever done, and certainly not the weirdest thing they’ve ever told the group about, but on their drive to school it’s easy for them to blame their reluctance on Pierce’s perversion and Shirley’s pearl clutching. Annie’s jumpy during the discussion, and Abed abnormally quiet. Troy’s hands are clammy on the steering wheel.

  
  


It turns out that Jeff did not share their compulsion toward secrecy. By some small mercy it seems he only told Britta.

Troy and Abed are in the parking lot at the end of the day when she finds them, calling their names and maneuvering awkwardly through the crowds. They had made an unspoken decision to avoid her once they figured out she knew, but this time they stop and wait for her. When she reaches them she stays silent for a moment, hunched over and panting.

“Make it quick, Perry,” Abed says. “We have a date to imagine into existence.”

“That’s why I wanted to talk to you guys,” Britta says, finally standing up straight, though still with a hand on her side like she’s got a stitch. “Jeff texted me about the date thing. Are you sure you’ve thought it through?”

She has her therapy voice on, and Troy involuntarily shivers.

“Thought it through and went through with it,” he says defensively. “Tonight’s the second date.”

Britta’s eyes widen. “Oh, Jeff didn’t tell me that. Am I finding out before Jeff?”

Troy is momentarily thrown off, more so when Britta’s eyes light up at Abed’s nod.

“Our plan went perfectly,” Abed says. “I’m sure you noticed that Annie was more chipper today. You can put aside whatever objections you may have had.”

“I don’t think you understand what I’m concerned about,” Britta says, then steps closer. “You two know I lived in New York, right? You can tell me anything.”

“What would we want to tell you?” Troy asks, genuinely confused.

“Are you feeling left out?” Abed guesses. “The thing is, Britta, you just don’t have the same aptitude for role play that Troy and Annie and I do.”

“Role play?” Britta frowns. “Oh, Jeff didn’t mention… were you guys pretending to be other people last night?”

“Not Annie, just us,” Troy says. “We were being the kind of guys she’d like.”

“Oh,” Britta says, and her face softens into something sad and concerned. “I thought you went as yourselves. Wouldn’t you want to?”

Abed frowns. “It wouldn’t be Annie’s perfect date, then.”

“Do you think it might be… your perfect date?" Neither of them reply, and Britta tilts her head like a teacher. "Have either of you heard of throuples? I was exposed to many in New York.”

Troy leans in. “Is it a sex position?” A lot of the times when Britta mentions New York, it’s to do with the sex positions she knows.

“It’s a relationship with three people,” Abed says. “There was an unaired TV pilot about one last fall season. It has sitcom potential, you know.”

Troy nods. Britta puts her hand on Abed’s shoulder. “It has _real life_ potential too, Abed.”

Abed frowns. Troy picks up Britta’s hand and returns it to her side.

“What do you mean?” Troy asks.

“This date. It sounds like the both of you were on it with Annie? You didn't sub in or out, or anything?”

They nod. “I guess one of us could have played the waiter,” Abed says. “But that wouldn’t really be fair.”

“Because you both want to be her date? And because you assumed you’d both be going on it without question?”

They nod again. Britta smiles. “Do you think there’s a chance that’s because the two of you are interested in Annie in a romantic way?”

Troy frowns. “Britta… you know Abed and I are together right? Wait, when you’re talking to other people and you mention knowing a gay couple, are you talking about _another_ couple?”

“Don’t worry Troy, of course I mean you and Abed. But there’s nothing stopping you from loving each other _and_ loving someone else. If that’s what you want.”

“You mean. Theoretically, hypothetically, it would be possible for… an individual to be in love with both Abed and Annie?”

“Or, theoretically,” Abed puts in, “Troy and Annie?”

Britta’s smile widens, and she nods deeply.

Troy’s eyes seek out Abed’s. He knows that there have been moments where both he and Abed have thought about Annie like that. He imagines most people attracted to women who’ve met Annie have had those moments, though for him they have increased exponentially since she moved in. He’s seen a lot of guys at Greendale develop very obvious crushes, because she’s beautiful and sweet and smart and laughs at their jokes and looks at them with big adoring eyes; sometimes those guys lose interest when they hear about the time she pretended to murder Jeff to teach the dean a lesson, or ratted out Chang because she was scared of losing friends, or screamed at the top of her lungs and made them all strip down naked because she was convinced one of them had stolen her pen. But those things wouldn’t make Troy lose interest. Realizing she was actually sort of crazy is part of what made him love her – as a friend.

Or maybe something else.

“Time out,” Abed says, and puts his arm around Troy’s shoulders. They take a few steps away from Britta and confer quietly, their heads close together.

“I like how she makes sure we eat and keep our apartment clean,” Troy says.

“I like how she can calm us when we get too worked up in the imaginatorium,” Abed responds. “Or come up with ways for us to change the story up if the imaginatorium runs low on imagination fuel.”

Troy nods. “I like that we can rely on her to know what to do, or to at least try and solve problems a lot of other people think are stupid.”

“When we get too detached from reality, she can talk us down calmly and gradually. She doesn’t carelessly rip us out of our fantasy like Jeff would, or accidentally make it worse with abstract psychoanalytical concepts like Britta.”

“I like that she’s comfortable around us. She tells us things she’s too embarrassed to tell other people.”

“I find her easier to read than most people, too,” Abed says. “She’s like you that way. You both have the facial expressions of cartoons, there’s less subtlety and nuance. When she’s happy she squeals and claps. When she’s mad she yells and pounds her fist. I know where I stand with her.”

“And,” Troy says, glancing at Abed nervously -- it’s not new to either of them, but after Britta’s bombshell, it feels more dangerous: “she’s really, really, pretty.”

“Yes. Yes she is.”

“I still think you’re really pretty.”

Abed nods. “Of course. You too.”

“When I was trying to work out how I felt about you, last summer,” Troy says. “I’d think about kissing you. And I realized I liked thinking about it.”

“Do you think you’d like thinking about kissing Annie?”

Troy nods. Abed nods back. “Same.”

They return to Britta.

“We think you might be onto something,” Abed says.

Britta fist pumps. “Take that Jeff,” she says, which Troy won’t question for now. She straightens up immediately after, and puts on her concerned face. “So what are you gonna do?”

Troy and Abed turn to each other simultaneously. When no suggestion is forthcoming from his other half, Troy purses his lips and asks a question he hates asking of Britta. “What would you recommend?”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm upping the chapter count to four because this got unwieldy... but I have most of the final chapter (originally just the latter half of this chapter) already written so it should be up soon.
> 
> Thanks for all the very kind comments!! Always weirdly nervous posting my first work in a new fandom so they were very reassuring and appreciated. 
> 
> Oh also, in my head this whole story was very angst free and light, which is miles away from what I usually write, so when it actually came to it it seems I couldn't resist making my characters Struggle and Doubt, although only to the extent I thought I could get away with without totally upending the fun and fancy free trobedison vibe i was seeking to establish.

Britta’s plan is apparently complex enough that she encourages Troy and Abed to go on with their date that evening as intended. She says that she’ll have something ready for them by Saturday afternoon, two days away.

Troy doesn’t know how to feel. He does like having the situation out of his control – he gets Annie and Abed to pick movies and take out most of the time, he’s definitely not good with making decisions about important things. Even if Britta brittas Saturday afternoon, at least the responsibility won’t fall on his shoulders. He knows Abed’s the same. He had thought that Abed was romantically and sexually confident, suave in a way Troy could only ever pretend at, but Abed disabused him of that notion in one of their first ever Relationship Conversations. Abed said he’s only competent with people who he knows are only one episode arcs, at most, with no long lasting risk or impact. Dating any of the main characters in his life is much more daunting and consequential. Abed is silent on their drive home, and Troy knows why: he is running through all the ways them getting involved with Annie could play out. If Abed also had to determine the best way for them to make their move on her, Troy is sure he’d become immobile and non-verbal, his brain over heating with all the possibilities and crashing like a Greendale computer.

So on the one hand, having Britta guide them through this is ideal. But on the other, waiting till Saturday might drive him crazy. He’s tempted to call Annie now – knowing she’s in class – to leave a rushed voicemail declaring his love just to be done with it. He hates giving himself time to over think things... but apparently the twenty minute drive home is enough.

There’s a chance she might only like Abed. They did kiss, and she was disappointed when Abed didn’t develop that part of their relationship any further. Sure, she had a high school crush on Troy, but she thoroughly rejected him the time Britta and Jeff talked him into making a move on her. He was different back then – his and Annie’s relationship was different back then – but still. He should ask Britta about polyamory and whether it’s possible for Abed to date Troy and Annie simultaneously without Troy and Annie dating. He’d support it, even if thinking about it makes him sad.

Of course, there’s also the possibility that Annie doesn’t want either of them. As hard as it is for Troy to accept that someone wouldn’t see Abed as the most desirable person on earth, the only time Annie has shown interest in Abed was when he was pretending to be someone else. And they had designed Brent and Brian based on years of observation of what Annie wants, as well as the kind of love interests she designs for herself in the dreamatorium. He’s not sure that either he or Abed conform to those archetypes.

And then there’s the possibility that Annie wants to get involved with both of them. While his immediate reaction to that is all butterflies and fireworks, he has to play worst case scenario. He forced himself to do that before getting involved with Abed, too, because he knew their best friendship was on the line. Ultimately he concluded that keeping something from Abed was more likely to ruin what they had than speaking openly about how he felt, and that if they ended up not working out, Abed would be able to find a way to put them back together.

If the polyamory thing ended up not working out… he’s not sure Annie could handle that. Annie doesn’t handle things not working out well in general. He can imagine her moving out, transferring, never speaking to them again. And the idea terrifies him, as does the effect he knows it would have on Abed. He’s not sure Abed could move past losing Annie, and ultimately that would mean Troy would probably lose Abed too.

When they pull in outside their apartment after a drive of total silence, they turn to look at one another.

“After the initial excitement wore off,” Abed says, “I realized how scary this is.”

“Yeah.”

“But we have to try, right?”

“Do we?”

Abed frowns. “I’m not going to ask Annie out if you don’t want to go out with her too. But I don’t think...”

He is silent for an extended moment, then takes Troy’s hand. “The first month of last summer, when you stopped really talking to me, it felt like my heart had been ripped out.” He says it matter of factly, and Troy thinks he might be actually describing the physical sensation, rather than quoting anything or playing the role of someone who confronts the person who hurt them. He looks down, hating the reminder of that period, for both Abed and his own sake. “And I understand now that you didn’t abandon me. And I understand how hard it was for you to be friends with me after realizing you loved me, and that you needed time to process. That’s fine. I often need time, too. But I don’t want Annie to go through what I went through. Or what you went through, with the not knowing. And if we keep this from her, we’re not going to be able to act normally around her, or be friends with her the way we were before. Just like you weren’t able to be friends with me. That trope has withstood the test of time. I’ve never seen it subverted. So if we don’t tell her, we lose her.”

“If we tell her, we could still lose her.”

“Yes,” Abed says, “but it’s less likely.”

Troy sighs. Abed has always been braver than him. “Can we at least wait, till whatever Britta has planned? I don’t want to rush anything and I’d like...”

“To spend time with Annie as just a friend one more time before it maybe becomes too late?”

“Yeah.”

“It might be harder than you’d like, considering we still have to plan a date for her.”

  
  


In terms of décor, they stick with what worked the previous night. They wear their only other suits, and don’t wear Jeff’s aftershave, in part because Jeff threatened them with bodily harm (it turns out he has security cameras in his Lexus) and in part because the smokey, masculine smell made Troy feel under pressure like when he was cajoled into drinking at high school parties, or even like when he met Levar Burton, though diluted down 99%. He prefers fresher, lighter scents, like the detergent Abed smells like, or the detergent-but-also-flowers that Annie smells like.

They decide to change up their characters – Brian and Brent were good first attempts, but not exactly what Annie needs. This time, Troy will play Sam Goodman, an honest, hardworking, successful account manager at a multi-national corporation whose board members have framed for embezzlement. He’s laying low and desperately needs a plucky, determined investigator who believes in him. Abed will play Chris Gunsworth, a retired spy turned gourmet chef who wants to put his old life behind him, but finds it hard when his ex-boss keeps showing up and begging him to take one last job. Chris just wants someone to show him he belongs in a world other than that of danger, intrigue, and espionage. Troy would prefer to be Chris, but the rule is whoever comes up with the name gets to play the part. That’s why Annie has way more parts than either of them in most of their games.

In the end it doesn’t matter, because just like the previous night, they don’t end up sticking to their characters much beyond the introductions. Annie showed up (from inside her room, where they made her wait till everything was ready) in a bright red dress with a flouncy skirt, and ballet flats that make Troy smile because he knows – as well as being pretty – they’re also her most comfortable pair of shoes.

This date feels more date-y than last night, Troy realizes, but he’s not sure if it’s because of him and Abed or because of Annie. He knows he’s more conscious of how he reacts to her smile, her hand on his arm, her eyes and her enthusiasm when she talks about a presentation she’s doing tomorrow. He thinks Abed must be too, because he keeps letting out these nervous high pitched laughs that Troy has rarely ever heard before, but which Annie thankfully doesn’t question. She may think it's a character choice for Chris.

Troy isn’t convinced the change in atmosphere is entirely attributable to him and his boyfriend, though. Maybe Annie is more able to throw herself into the game when she’s all dressed up and has had time to prepare, because he's sure she's more date-Annie this time round. Last night Annie behaved much like how Troy was used to her behaving, which is great, but there might be more giggling and eye twinkling and saucy remarks at the dinner table tonight. They only have pretend champagne, but Troy feels like he’s been drinking the real thing, light headed and warm and bubbly. He and Abed have never really been the sit down dinner dating types, but there’s something to be said for staying in the same place and not doing anything but looking at and talking to the people you’re with. The proximity and simplicity is intoxicating. Yet another Annie Thing, he realizes begrudgingly, that he initially wrote off as boring and dumb, that has instead turned out to be sort of awesome.

  
  


This time when they finish up, standing outside Annie’s bedroom door, there is no awkward pause. Annie doesn’t give them the chance for it, because quick as anything she’s leaning in and up to put her lips to Troy’s. He stays still, doesn’t even close his eyes – just watches Annie close hers, his hands clenched at his side. He loves her smell so much and he rarely gets it this up close, her hair tickling his cheek. He doesn’t know what to do, he doesn’t know why she’s doing this or what she wants, but when she pulls back – a second, a minute, an hour later – she’s smiling, and looking sort of bashful, and he smiles back. _I LOVE YOU,_ he thinks loudly.

Maybe Abed had time to prepare while Troy was getting kissed, or maybe it’s just a matter of him once again being more suave than Troy, but when Annie kisses him, he kisses back. It’s still a closed mouth and quick affair, but his hand goes up to cup her cheek, and he dips her ever so slightly, emphasizing their height difference. It is quite possibly the hottest thing Troy has ever seen. Abed has a small satisfied smile when it ends, and Annie looks dazed.

“Right,” Annie says. “Okay. Good night.”

“Night,” they say in chorus.

She turns away, but her hand stills on the door handle, and she turns back to them. “Would you… does it… Two might be your limit, which is fine and all, but… do you guys want to do this again? You know. Whenever. I’m chill about it, I’m chill.” Her voice is higher pitched than Troy typically associates with chill people, but he doesn’t question it. He glances at Abed, who nods.

“Yeah, we’d like to,” he says.

“Okay, cool. Tomorrow night?”

“Um...” He struggles to come up with an explanation for why they can't do tomorrow.

“I’m sorry,” she says, frowning. “That’s way too soon, obviously you don’t want to do this three nights in a row. We can do it whenever.”

“No it’s not that,” Troy says. He doesn’t mind Abed’s silence, recognizing this as the kind of conversation he takes the lead on. “We just already sort of had in mind maybe doing something for Saturday afternoon, if you wanted to keep that time clear.”

“Saturday afternoon,” Annie nods. “Yeah, that works. 36 hours. Not that I’m counting or anything, it’s just easy math.”

“Super easy,” Troy agrees, he thinks convincingly.

  
  


When the sheet curtain closes behind them in their makeshift bedroom, Abed grips the lapels of Troy’s suit and kisses him, hard. This isn’t as surprising as the kiss from Annie, so Troy kisses back.

They get lost in it, for a while, but Abed’s good at getting them back on track. Well, sometimes. Depends on what the track is.

“That went well,” Abed says.

“That was awesome.”

“I noticed something, and I need help reacting to it.”

“Shoot, buddy.”

“When Annie kissed us, she made no reference to the pretend nature of the date or our pretend characters, before or after. She made no effort to integrate the kisses into role play. I figured she would have, if we pressed. So that’s why I didn’t press.”

“Oh.” Troy hadn’t noticed. “I don’t know how to react to that either.”

“So I’m not missing something super obvious?”

Troy shakes his head. “Not unless I am. And when have you ever known me to miss something obvious?”

Abed pauses, as if considering a response, but kisses Troy instead. Troy thinks he probably prefers that. This kiss goes on for longer, and there’s no track for Abed to redirect them to.

  
  


Britta isn’t at college the next day – Annie claims, with a suspicious glint in her eye, that Britta had shown her face in the morning, but no one else can corroborate and in any case, she has disappeared by the time Troy and Abed start actively trying to locate her. They’re both too antsy about Saturday to stand the radio silence, further amped up by Annie's giddiness, how she squeezes their hands when they part ways after lunch and tells them she's so excited for tomorrow. It is becoming a problem that they have no idea what tomorrow will entail.

“What even takes this long to plan?” Troy asks, then gasps. “You think we’re going on a cruise?”

“It’s only meant to be the afternoon,” Abed reminds him gently, and Troy huffs with disappointment.

Jeff gives them weird looks when they ask about Britta, like maybe he’s somewhat privy to her plan, but he claims total ignorance and that he doesn’t even remember them bringing up the idea to date Annie in the first place, and Troy thinks pushing will put Jeff on the defensive and provoke some biting comments about the whole Annie situation that Troy doesn't think he has the stomach for today. Abed’s quiet too, and eventually they make peace with having no idea what’s going on.

They’re hanging out in Pavel’s dorm room when their phones buzz simultaneously. They pull them out to see a text from Britta.

_Okay okay I think I have Saturday sorted. It will be Annie's actual dream date, courtesy of me.  
_

They look at each other, but before they can say anything, a new text comes through: _Not that I know better because I'm a woman and am destined for wedding planning home making etc._

_In this specific instance, because you guys are sort of being idiots, I do know better. But mark my word, most dates I plan are disasters!!  
_

Y _ou can relax it’s going to be great we can meet up Saturday morning I’ll give you the supplies and the directions. And also something else ;)_

_Don’t ask me what the something else is it’s a surprise but it’s good I_ _swear_ _;) ;) ;)_

_And promise me something,_ the final text reads, _no costume_ _s._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A very weird and possibly unnecessary disclaimer but I'm very sorry Britta's 'big plan' wasn't revealed in this chapter, i wanted it to be but there was just no way to do it naturally, I hate having anything like a cliff hanger and while this isn't exactly super suspenseful I want to make it clear I'm not deliberately trying to create a massive build up to the 'reveal' (because it's straightforward and underwhelming don't get your hopes up!) it's just that story pacing wise it didn't make sense for it to have happened yet.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At first I was like how could Britta afford two bottles of vodka to give away, then I was like this is sit com rules their nonsense isn't limited by financial concerns.

They meet up with Britta at the coffee shop roughly half way between their apartment and hers – the study group have calculated the fairest meet up locations for every possible combination of their group, and every likely departure point of each member. Troy and Abed order orange juice and Britta gets a coffee, which Troy knows from experience will be weak and over priced. (He still pays for  it , but that’s fine, because Abed keeps scrupulous records for the purposes of obtaining reimbursements from Britta’s parents. ) The coffee shop doesn’t have much going for it other than the fact that they won’t argue over who spent the most on gas, small and quiet with standoffish staff and sticky tables. It is a great spot for a surreptitious exchange of information, though. He can imagine Jason Bourne intercepting a target here.

It seems to good to be true, but Britta might realize the political thriller potential of their setting too, and instead of saying anything, she slides a yellow piece of note paper across the table, written on in purple cursive instantly recognizable as Annie’s.

“What is this?” Troy asks. “Did you go through her stuff? She gave us her locker combination for emergencies only.”

Beside him, Abed looks equally concerned.

“No, no, she knows I have this, I asked her to do it for me. I told her it was a psych assignment,” Britta says with a wave of her hand. “I’ve gotten people to do loads of things for me by making up a fake psych assignment.” She stops smiling and sits up straighter. “Not you guys, though. I’d never do that with you two.”

Troy nods, relieved. It does explain why Pierce did Britta’s groceries for a month straight, though.

“Basically I just asked her to describe her perfect partner, like, the traits she’d want in the person, or people, she’d like to spend the rest of her life with. In reality, not in a day dream.”

Given the context, Troy is surprised at how short the list is. He pulls the piece of paper closer to him and Abed, and reads.

_Kind_

_Honest_

_Fun_

_Easy Going_

_Understanding (of the world in general but specifically of me, e.g., it’s cool that even though they’re easy going I’m not)_

_Not a flake (sorry Britta, don’t know what the adjective for that is. ‘Reliable’ isn’t quite right, because that might mean ‘shows up to appointments on time’, which I don’t mean. I more mean ‘isn’t going to change their mind about me every fortnight’. I would have spent longer trying to figure out a better word but you’re staring at me from across the cafeteria and have set a pretty restrictive time limit.)_

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Abed says with a frown. “There’s no reference to an Ivy league education or a tragic past or a crisis they need her to save them from.”

“Because she doesn’t actually care about those things,” Britta scoffs. 

Troy’s eyes don’t leave the list. Those are some of the first six terms he’d use to describe Abed, along with _magical_ and _genius._ And while he doesn’t want to say he’s all that too, he knows he’d be more than willing to try to be those things for Annie (having built up a lot of experience trying to be those things for Abed). And a hell of a lot more likely to succeed than he would be if the traits she was looking for were to do with wine tasting or networking or handshakes (not of the secret variety).

“You got her to do this assignment because you knew she would say things that weren’t completely unobtainable for us,” Abed asks, though without any intonation to indicate it’s a question.

“Yes,” Britta says, proudly.

“Because you think she likes us?” Troy asks, with enough intonation to make up for Abed’s lack.

Britta sighs. “Who knows what lies in the hearts of men, or women. All I know is what I see, and sure there’s a chance I could read something wrong, and she isn’t interested in you guys, but what I want to get across is that… it’s not outside the realm of possibility that she could want to be with you. You don’t have to be other people to have her want you. You can be you, and still have a fighting chance.”

Troy and Abed sit in silence for an extended moment.

“And I’ll say this much. When I read in combination those six particular traits she chose very carefully, I don’t think of Pierce, or Shirley, or Jeff, or me. I think of you two. And maybe Neil, but he and Vicky aren’t nearly as open to polyamory as you are.”

Abed puts his hand firmly on her shoulder, leaning awkwardly across the table to do so.  “Britta, you brilliant son of a bitch.” 

“My God, she’s done it,” Troy offers, “she’s actually done it.”

“Okay,” Britta says, “so that means this kind of meddling is allowed and appropriate and even useful, right?”

“Don’t try and trick us into giving you a carte blanche like that, just because you caught us in a good mood,” Abed says sternly, though his leg is bouncing next to Troy’s.

“Well maybe the date will work, and you’ll give me some meddling leeway.”

Troy and Abed remain stony faced.

“At least give me more meddle room than you give Jeff.”

“We can review our policy on meddling later,” Abed concludes, after glancing at Troy and presumably registering the uncertainty on his face. “For now, tell us about the date.”

Britta leads them out to her car, in the back of which they see a picnic blanket, a picnic basket, and a map of the Greendale area with a red X over a seemingly random point in the nearby woods. The map looks like something a serial killer would have, but everything else is encouraging.

“I’ve never been on a picnic,” Abed says.

“My whole family would do them for fourth of July, and it sucked. But with just two people it could be nice.”

“Trust me,” Britta says confidently, “Annie will love it.”

  
  


They transfer the supplies to their own car, and while they trust Britta, once they’ve said their goodbyes and she’s on her way, they do take out the food she put in the basket – a half eaten bag of chips, gas station sandwiches, and two bottles of vodka – and replace it with a quick shop of their own.

“Before Annie moved in,” Troy says as they peruse the grocery store aisles, “we probably would’ve thought that was an acceptable meal for a date.”

“She’s a good influence on us,” Abed agrees.

“Do you think we’re a good influence on her?” Troy asks.

Abed nods assuredly. “She has more fun now. Also her sleep patterns are better than they were last year and she’s stopped biting her nails, but I don’t know if those things are connected to her moving in with us.”

“At least we didn’t make it worse, I guess,” Troy says. “Some of the others thought we would.”

“We showed them,” Abed says in a half-hearted movie voice as he reads an ingredient list for any of Annie’s no-no chemicals. “We showed them all.”

  
  


Annie is wearing a white summer dress when they pick her up, perfect for a picnic, and she looks surprised when Troy and Abed don’t put on equally suitable gear. Abed stays in his graphic tee and plaid shirt, Troy in his soft, over-washed sweater. They climb in the car and have a casual, enjoyable conversation, maybe with a slight undercurrent of nerves, though Troy’s not convinced that’s emanating from anyone other than himself.

Their trek to Britta’s X is only fifteen minutes, though it probably could’ve been quicker if they didn’t insist on navigating the woods linking arms with each other Wizard of Oz style. Eventually they emerge on an idyllic and deserted clearing, green grass luminous with sunlight and intermittent yellow flowers.

“This looks like an ad for anti-depressants,” Annie squeals, clapping her hands together. They lay down the blanket, Annie scouring the edges of the clearing for rocks to hold down the blanket corners with as Troy and Abed unpack the food.

They settle down and Abed gives them each a can of ginger beer, because they know that’s the drink Annie wants on relaxed sunny days. Troy thinks, this might actually be really simple, and then Annie asks, “so who are my dates today?”

Troy and Abed look at each other, and time stands still as he tries to conceal how scared he is. He remembers his extensive text exchanges with Annie from last summer, and the occasional late night call. The topic of conversation had been Abed, and Troy’s increasingly unavoidable feelings for him. Sometimes her tone would turn wistful or sad – he had known that was a particularly lonely summer for her – but she was always in full support of him and Abed getting involved with each other. There was a text of hers he had read repeatedly at the time, including on his drive over to Abed’s house to finally ask him out: _t_ _here’s nothing_ _more attractive_ _than openness and honesty, Troy, and no stronger foundation for a relationship._

“Troy and Abed,” he says confidently. “We’re not being other people on today’s date. If you’re okay with that.”

Annie’s face goes blank, and one glance at Abed is all Troy needs to know he’s about to freak out, and Annie says, “please be very clear about what you mean right now.”

“We mean we want to date you,” Troy says. “Do you want to date us?”

“What do you mean by date?” Annie asks. “Is this a game I don’t know?”

“No game,” Abed says.

“Britta told us what polyamory is,” Troy says. “Do you know what it is?”

Annie nods. “My roommate at rehab wanted me to join her polycule.”

Troy doesn’t know that word, but decides it’s unimportant for the moment. “Well, we want to be with you. That’s what we mean. We have like, feelings for you and stuff.”

Abed nods. Silence reigns.

“Do you have feelings for us?” Troy asks hesitantly. Annie looks dazed.

“I… thought it was hopeless,” she says. “I thought I was just being me again, silly and childish and wanting what I can’t have.”

“Silly and childish things can be fun,” Troy can’t help pointing out, “but also you’re mature and smart and you know yourself.”

“And you can have us,” Abed points out. Another vital point.

“I don’t get it,” she says, “if you liked me, if all this was about you liking me, why did you have to pretend to be other people?”

“We didn’t have to,” Abed says, “we just thought it was what you wanted.”

“Isn’t it what you want?” Troy says, unable to quiet his insecurities, even after the list Britta showed him, which he thinks maybe they can get framed. “Guys with five o’clock shadows and country club memberships?”

“No! I mean, those are the kind of guys I chose for my fantasies,” she says. “The whole point of fantasies is choosing things we know wouldn’t work in real life. I mean, I also wanted to be a wise old hermit who lived in a cave that one time, but in real life caves make me anxious. And I never fantasized about guys like you two, because I had you in my life. I didn’t need a fantasy. And because...” she rolls her eyes. “Okay, I’ll admit, it took me a while to realize I had feelings for you. I mean, falling for my two community college roommates – who were already in a relationship with each other – wasn’t exactly part of my five year plan. And I have since done extensive research, but polyamory wasn’t a concept I was all that familiar with. So yeah, this isn’t the type of relationship I saw myself in, but nothing about Greendale is what I expected. I couldn’t imagine falling for people like you, but I couldn’t even imagine having friends like you before it happened. And you guys can’t tell me that before you met you thought you’d end up in a relationship like yours.”

Troy nods. “I never could’ve dreamed of Abed. And I know I already knew you, but I was stupid, and I never could’ve dreamed of being smart enough to actually get a chance to be with you.”

Annie reaches over and grabs Troy’s hand, squeezes it. Her skin is soft and warm, not as calloused as Abed’s. He squeezes back compulsively.

“Actually, I worked out that lovable ex-jock and over-achieving mom friend were the most likely college student demographics for me to end up with,” Abed says.

“Hell yeah!” Troy fist pumps. “Take that, other college student demographics.”

“You see me as a mom friend?” Annie aws. “I hate that Britta and Shirley always get to fill that category just because of their age. And, you know, because Shirley’s an actual mom. But as if Britta’s ever reminded any of you to bring jackets anywhere. She’s the rebellious teen daughter friend.”

Troy feels moved to defend Britta in light of how she’s helped them. “Well, this picnic isn’t very rebellious teen daughter.”

“Rebellious teen daughters often have moments of sweetness and emotional vulnerability,” Abed says.

Annie scoffs. “Please, you think Britta planned all this? I figured out her angle instantly, making me make a list like that. Greendale psych department assignments are inappropriate and invasive, but not that inappropriate and invasive. I just happened to accidentally hand over another list about what my ideal day time date was.” Troy’s not surprised that Britta fell for that. The variety and specificity of Annie’s lists is infamous, and he did once find her list of best desserts by the days of the week in the apartment’s Cheers box set, somehow. “Which Britta did manage to realize pretty accurately.”

They all glance around once more at their beautiful surroundings, and at the food laid out in front of them, still untouched.

“Oh God,” Troy realizes. “We’re going to have to thank her in our wedding speeches. Before any of the others, I mean.”

Annie shakes her head. “Sorry, Shirley actually called dibs on that freshman year. Of course, she might change her mind if she finds out I’m marrying two people at once. I hope she still comes to the wedding.”

Abed looks at Annie, with wide eyes. Bringing them back on track, Troy thinks gratefully. “So you’re up for this?”

Annie smiles. “I think it makes sense for an over-achieving mom friend to have two boyfriends she’s emotionally committed to.”

Abed smiles, slow and small and real. “Subversive,” he says. “Nice.”

Troy smiles, too. This is it, he thinks, the perfect date.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and fin! thanks for reading everyone hope you enjoyed :) extra extra thanks for all the lovely comments, they made me really happy!


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